The US House of Representatives this week made waves with what is being described as a historic and unprecedented acknowledgment of Israel’s biblical and historical rights to Judea and Samaria.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.), who visited the region both as a congressman and again in 2023 as speaker, told Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan during a visit to Washington: “The Bible is clear—Judea and Samaria are the Land of Israel. I do not understand why we debate this anew every single day.”
Johnson’s remarks came during a high-profile week that included a landmark hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East, titled “Understanding Judea and Samaria: Historical, Strategic and Political Dynamics in US–Israel Relations.” It marked the first time the US Congress formally used the region’s accurate, historic name.
“The people of Israel know who stands with them in this moment of crisis,” said Johnson, referring to the war against Hamas. “They recognize it, and they value it.”
Dagan presented the speaker with copper artwork featuring ancient biblical sites such as Joseph’s Tomb in Shechem (Nablus), Mount Gerizim, and the ancient capital of Samaria (Sebastia), underscoring the spiritual and historical depth of Jewish connection to the region.
“No nation on earth has a connection to its homeland as deep as the Jewish people have to the Land of Israel—especially to Judea and Samaria, the land of the Bible,” Dagan told Johnson. “There is no greater justice than fulfilling the words of the prophets in the Land of Israel.”
US House Speaker Mike Johnson (left) meeting with Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, December 2025. Credit: Samaria Regional Council.
Dagan’s trip, which included meetings with lawmakers, Trump admin officials, and top Evangelical Christian leaders, was aimed at promoting Israeli sovereignty over the biblical heartland—territory that was promised to the Jewish people and documented in both Scripture and legal precedent.
At the congressional hearing, legal scholar Eugene Kontorovich of George Mason University invoked the international law principle of uti possidetis juris, explaining that since the pre-state entity of Mandatory Palestine included Judea and Samaria, Israel inherited legal claim to it upon independence.
“Judea and Samaria are not some ambiguous no man’s land—they are the rightful inheritance of the Jewish people, both biblically and legally,” Kontorovich emphasized.
The term “West Bank,” imposed by Jordan during its occupation from 1948 to 1967, has long been challenged by Israelis and others who point to the region’s centrality in Jewish history and Scripture.
Even as the hearing touched on the political complexities surrounding annexation and Palestinian statehood, the tone of the day signaled a tectonic shift: a growing recognition in Washington that Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria is not only a matter of modern politics, but of historical justice.
Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) pushed back on territorial claims rooted in history, but was met with a sharp rebuttal from witnesses and colleagues. Heated exchanges and procedural arguments briefly disrupted the proceedings, highlighting the passions surrounding the issue.
Yet amid the fireworks, one truth stood out clearly: for the first time, Congress is seriously grappling with the foundational question of who the land belongs to—and why.
“Two thousand years ago, the prophets Jeremiah, Amos and Ezekiel foretold that the people of Israel would return to their land, rebuild the hills of Samaria, plant vineyards and produce wine,” said Dagan. “That is exactly what we are doing today.”
As of early 2025, over half a million Jews live in Judea and Samaria. Nearly 70% of Israelis support extending full legal sovereignty over the region. In Speaker Johnson, they have found a rare and powerful American voice echoing the convictions of Scripture: that the Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land—but its rightful heirs.
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